PharmaTimes - July/August 2016

It's not often that the pharmaceutical and medical community are in total agreement. Yet, at this moment in history, the consensus view is that the drugs emerging from the pharma pipeline over the coming years will utterly transform many diseases.

The sheer scale of innovation – standing on the shoulders of some of the greatest scientific discoveries of all time – is astounding. Many of these drugs are biologics and many of them very expensive. What's more, many of these very expensive drugs are being used in combination to deliver extraordinary effectiveness.

But who pays? After all, a drug is only effective if we can afford to pay for it. Healthcare systems were barely coping before the financial crisis of 2008 and many are in decline through lack of funds in this age of austerity. One solution to this global crisis touted by many are the biosimilars; highly similar versions of biopharmaceuticals that have lost exclusivity.

This year, we celebrate a decade of biosimilar use here in Europe, yet the market is very much in its infancy. There are still many unknowns and no one can answer that most pressing of questions – how much will biosimilars save health systems? In Same Difference, we explore that question and ask many more.

July 2016 - magazine highlights

With some of the world's biggest biologics teetering on
the edge of the patent cliff, biosimilars are big business. Yet, with the
market still in its infancy, it's not as easy as you might think to get these
cheap biologics to the patients that need them